IVE IS HYPE SYNAPSE CIRCUIT

"And the hype completes the deception..." 

 SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
WADING INTO JONY IVE’S ARGUMENT WITH MOTOROLA

Goodhour, Synapse Circuit Readers! How are you? As always I hope that all is well in your world and that your tech is functioning as it should! Are you enjoying the Lollipop upgrade on your Moto G 2014? I certainly am!

Speaking of Motorola... Have you read Jony Ive’s thinly veiled attack upon the Motorola ‘customize it yourself’ concept?

“Their value proposition was, ‘Make it whatever you want. You can choose whatever color you want,” Ive said. “And I believe that’s abdicating your responsibility as a designer.” Jony Ive

Here’s what I think...

#Motorola #RickOsterloh #MotoX #JonyIve #ProjectAra #Design

THOSE GUYS
Huh, huh... Yes, those guys over at Apple love to talk up a good fight and fall short – seriously short – of delivering the goods. The philosophy at Apple is, “Show me the money!” Cook’s syrupy sickly sweet tones are just another way of saying, “Cherching!” <The sound of a cash register> Treat Apple customers mean (by these jacked-up prices) and keep them keen! Yet Apple comes across as a New Age religion heralding the future... It is such an odd thing to see iPhone users lining up outside an Apple store faithfully to receive communion.

The truth is that Apple is a laughing stock in terms of technology and design. I will tell you why in a bit... Hold on!

LEGACY
Once one is labelled a guru one can either be humble and set the standards or feel the need to smite those that dare to sing from another hymnbook. “Me! Me! Worship me!” Another way of looking at Jony Ive’s outburst is that once he is done with Apple or vice versa he’s not going to leave much of a “design” legacy. The truth is that the iPhone is super-bland in its appearance; at best it looks like a device that came from a 1960s Sci-Fi movie or from the 80s Buck Rogers TV series.


Ive is supposed to be a “designer” but the iPhone has stayed practically the same from the first to the latest – just a little elongated! To me that is not what design is about. I think Samsung learned this the hard way with the Galaxy S5. They tried to make a design signature by making minimal changes from the Galaxy S4 to the S5 and, from where I am sitting, it didn’t work out as Samsung envisaged. Again, the LG G3 was able to stand out from the blandness with a great looking design. Yes, HTC did great with the One M series aesthetics but the cameras were a disaster! And, as you know, Motorola put in a sterling effort with the Moto range and when it introduced the front-facing speakers the design went from very good to awesome!

Ive’s comment about Motorola allowing the consumer to choose colours and materials for the back came across as idiotic! The basic Moto X is just gorgeous as it is – I should know as I reviewed it. Being able to specify colours and materials such as leather for the back is being able to personally decorate the cake! Check out here: MotoX 2014 Review.



So, in my most humble opinion, that’s what design is all about... ...it’s about giving people a choice! The base Moto X 2014 is simply awesome and to have the ability to customize it is sublime! If Ive’s take on design is to not give the consumer a choice then why release the iPhone in a couple of different colours? Jony says, “Here’s the bloody iPhone! Take it or take it!”

That’s not a legacy I would be satisfied with if I were called a “design guru”.

ARASTED DEVELOPMENT
Another technological design concept that is going to squash Ive’s iPhone into a tiny footnote (if he’s lucky) is Project Ara! Now if I were a designer I would have wished that I had came up with that concept! Put simply: Project Ara has the capacity to change the smartphone world! No matter how many times Cook and co utters the word “fantastic” in the direction of the iPhone it is never going to take away from the fact that an Ara phone goes beyond superlatives. When Project Ara goes global it will most likely eclipse any smartphone sales record. It just so happens that I have 9 Android handsets and I would want an Ara handset in addition to my Moto G 2014, Nexus 6, Galaxy Note 4, etc.



No, I am not a handset nut! Pardon the technical term... ...I just don’t see the point of reselling old handsets as I am never going to get true value from it. I would rather use the old handsets as experimental units for rooting and installing a custom ROM, etc. It’s always good to have a spare! Wink, wink...

In any event I do think that Ive is overrated as a designer. It’s Android that’s paving the way for design developments as all the OEMs want to differentiate from the other. Also the Android operating system itself allows for OEMs to design handsets (and tablets) that pushes the envelope of what Android can do! I mean the Air Gestures, Multi-Windows and S Pen from Samsung with the Galaxy Note series is just amazing! I love that you can operate the Moto X with voice commands without touching it!



The iPhone is not only bland in appearance but the iOS operating system is uninspired. Ive must know this deep down inside as he – along with Cook and co – keep trying to slate the competition.

APPLE WATCH
Just one look at the Apple Watch design tells me that Ive isn’t much of a designer. The Samsung Gear S and Moto 360 are two fine examples of a smartwatch! All that Apple is doing at the moment is to smooch up to the fashion circles to get consumers to believe that the Apple Watch is a desired fashion item. It’s not!



And this is what I appreciate about the Android (and Tizen) based smartwatches – they sell themselves. The OEMs don’t try to sell you on fashion; they sell you on the functionality. I predict that the Apple Watch is going to stink once users figure out that they’ve been short-changed. The Apple Watch design is so, so bland. I can almost guarantee that the functionality will be hugely disappointing hence the need to hype it as a fashion item. No doubt that the parishioners of the Church of Apple will line up to get one to complete the set. But the other guys have such a great choice in smartwatches! Once again, when it comes to smartwatches it is Android that leads the way in design. Tizen too! As Tizen works with Samsung Android handsets it’s still an Android experience. I do appreciate with the Gear S that I don’t need an additional handset to make call.

VERDICT
Jony Ive is more hype than designer. Apple is good at designing hype. But to be fair, a lot of people buy into hype over substance. Not me!

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MOTO G 2014 LOLLIPOP 5.0.2 SYNAPSE CIRCUIT

Above: The Moto G 2014 image comes from a screen capture of a PhoneDog YouTube video. Thank you PhoneDog!

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
MOTO G (SECOND GENERATION) UK UPDATED TO LOLLIPOP 5.0.2

Goodhour, Synapse Circuit Readers! How’s it going? How are you? I hope that all is well in your world! And I also hope that the weather is being good to you! At the moment it is pouring down in London – and if it continues like this I had better start building the ark!

Hey! Did you treat yourself to a Motorola Moto G Second Generation last year? Have you been sitting patiently waiting for the good ship Lollipop to arrive? Well, it’s finally here! Yay!

#Google #MotoG2ndGeneration #LollipopUpdate #Lollipop #Lollipop5.0.2

FINALLY
Yes, finally the Lollipop update has arrived on the Moto G Second Generation and it is all good! Now the Moto G Second Generation resembles the Nexus 6 – the Nexus 6 Mini!

Having had the Nexus 6 for a while now I can’t say that Lollipop on the Moto G 2014 is much of a big deal but I certainly appreciate the upgrade. The KitKat capacitive buttons have been replaced by the Lollipop triangle (back), circle (home) and square (previous / multitasking).

The only things I don’t like about Lollipop thus so far are the Adaptive Brightness and Ambient Display; I don’t think they work well. I know on the Nexus 6 these were the source of rabid battery drainage. A small niggle is that I would like the interface / launcher to carousel infinitely. Oh, it would be an advantage for users to trigger Google Now by assigning a unique code word or words; many Android users have multiple (Android) handsets and uttering the magic words “OK, Google” soon becomes an annoyance. Sure, I’ve had to disable the Google Now settings on a number of my devices but it’s a great advantage for users to set-up their handsets as they prefer. Google should look into it for future updates – I hope they do!

IN CLOSING
It’s good to see that many devices are receiving the Lollipop upgrade. I can envisage that towards the end of this year that Lollipop should come up high on the Android operating system usage charts. I think a number of handsets from the last couple of years should be able to go Lollipop at some point. The Samsung Galaxy S4 and Note 2 is said to be getting the upgrade and, of course, the latest handsets this year are running Lollipop out of the box! Maybe Lollipop usage will be at about 70% by December 2015. Google’s game plan is very slow (but the Lollipop adaptation has been the fastest ever) but very, very sure.

What’s important for non-Android folks to understand is that Android just works. If I had gotten my upgrade further down the line I still would have been using my handset as usual. For the sake of the other guys: Way too much has been made over the different iterations of Android. I wouldn’t really use the term “fragmentation” as it pertains to malfunction. Think about it... If Android was so unusable then why is many people still content to use devices with older versions? The way Apple / Cook and co go on about this idea of “fragmentation” you’d be forgiven to think that users of Jelly Bean, for example, are tossing their handsets away because they have become unusable! Nothing can be further from the truth! I still have a Motorola RAZRi that’s still on Jelly Bean and it’s not something that I am het up about. I can still go on my social networks, use my apps as normal, etc. So there!

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A NEW SYNAPSE CIRCUIT WEBSITE IS ON THE WAY! 

ASUS 64-BIT FONEPAD 7 SYNAPSE CIRCUIT NEWS

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
ASUS 64-BIT FONEPAD 7 FE375CL 4G LTE
$250

#ASUS #Fonepad7FE375CL #AndroidTablet #Fonepad7ME372CL #Android

Goodhour, Synapse Circuit Readers! I hope that you are well and that you’re making the most of your tech!

If you ever wanted an Android tablet I think that 2015 is the best year to get one! Forget what the analysts are saying about tablets on the decline; you will find that it is mainly the iPad in decline. The technology savvy Android consumer has been biding his / her time for a juicy 64-bit tablet! Read on!

THAT’S PROGRESS
The ASUS Fonepad 7 4G LTE ME372CL is what I used to replace a damaged beyond repair Motorola RAZRi handset. As this hybrid tablet and phone goes I am quite happy with the performance but not so happy to learn that I was not able to use the data part of a standard SIM; either I can make calls or just access the Internet with a specific tablet SIM. Boo! What a load of bullsquirt!

Anyway, ASUS has launched the sequel to the Fonepad 7 4G LTE... The 2015 version is a fantastic reworking of the design; the bezels are slimmer, the front-facing speakers appear like razor blades and the quality of the build looks better. The innards are looking good what with a 64-bit Intel Atom CPU running at 1.3GHz, 2GB RAM and 8 / 16 internal storage. Here are the specs in more detail:-

CHIPSET
Intel Atom Z3530 chipset with 1.3 GHz quad-core CPU and PowerVR Series 6 – G6430 GPU

OS
Android 5, Lollipop

SCREEN
7" 1280 x 800 pixel IPS display with 10 finger multi-touch support and anti-fingerprint coating

CONNECTIVITY4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS/A-GPS, GLONASS, and Micro-USB

RAM / MEMORY
2GB of RAM
8 / 16 GB of internal memory
Expansion: microSD card

CAMERA
5MP
2MP front

BATTERY
3,950 mAh

COLOURS
Available in Black and White

It could very well be that the Fonepad 7 FE375CL LTE will feature dual SIM slots. The launch as been for the Taiwanese market and there is no news at the time of writing about the global market. $250 works out to £162 in currency exchange but it could very well be that ASUS will charge something like £199 which is still a good deal.

I have to say that the Fonepad 7 LTE 2015 (FE375CL) does look tempting. And this is what I love about the Android side of mobile devices: I can easily replace the ME372CL model. It is not so easy with the iPad. Okay, fair enough, the iPad is in a different league... ...I appreciate that. However, looking at the Apple App Store I can’t say that I am looking with envy!

The Fonepad 7 LTE 2015 has potential to do well.

FINAL THOUGHT
I think ASUS are off to a good start with its 64-bit Android devices this year. The Fonepad 7 LTE 2015 will run Lollipop out of the box which is another bonus – especially for Android fanatics! So many new Android devices come with KitKat on it with a promise of a future upgrade to Lollipop. No! We want the latest from the start!

I am quite sure that ASUS will release the Fonepad 7 LTE 2015 globally as it gives the consumer a cost effective tablet and phone – if you like phablet devices! I do like the idea of a 7” phablet! It’s just a shame about the SIM situation in that you can’t use the data portion of it. As I’ve pointed out before, the best solution is to have a portable Wi-Fi (Mi-Fi) as and when the data is needed. Or alternatively if you have another handset as the main driver you could set it up as a Wi-Fi hotspot bearing in mind that some networks do not allow this. I believe that there are some apps that will allow you to bypass the network restrictions regarding data sharing.

I would like ASUS to produce a high-end Android tablet as it has great experience in tablet manufacture. ASUS have been making great efforts and it’s paying off!

THANKS FOR READING...

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SAMSUNG GALAXY S6 LEAK DAMAGE SYNAPSE CIRCUIT

Above: Samsung teaser promotion alludes to wireless charging and speed.

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
SAMSUNG GALAXY S6:
LEAK DAMAGE?

Goodhour, Synapse Circuit Readers! How goes it? Well, it’s not long before we learn what the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S Edge is all about! Are you planning on getting either the Galaxy S6 or Galaxy S Edge? I’ve got to have the Galaxy S Edge as I gave the Galaxy Note Edge a miss for the Galaxy Gear VR!

Here’s a question: Do you think that all these “leaks” are damaging Samsung’s chances for success?

#Samsung #GalaxyS6 #GalaxySEdge  #Leaks

NO SURPRISES?
Do you think that there will be no surprises on the day of the reveal, 1^st March 2015?

What do we really know about the Galaxy S6 apart from some “leaked” specs? Not a lot, right?

Here’s what we don’t know:-

The new cameras
The camera is a big deal on smartphones these days and Samsung knows more than any manufacturer just how important it is to get this feature right. We’re seeing many Chinese manufacturers such as Huawei putting in some serious MegaPixels on the front-facing camera these days i.e. 13MP! Gosh! Golly! Gee! But at the end of the day it’s easy enough to take selfie pictures with the main camera. Besides, many selfie pictures are fodder for social network feeds; 13MP may be overkill for that purpose. If the rumoured 5MP front-facing camera on the Galaxy S6 & S Edge is accurate then I’d say that Samsung has got it right (for the front-facing camera).

As for the main camera... ...it seems there is some fluctuation between 16MP and 20MP. I am going to place a bet on 20MP as this was a big rumour for the Galaxy S5. We are still in the dark (hee hee) about how the main camera will compete against strong efforts from other manufacturers. I would imagine that in any event (Mobile World Congress 2015) Samsung will make a massive effort in outdoing the iPhone cameras. Samsung should be aiming to obliterate the iPhone cameras in terms of quality of results and not just a high MegaPixel rating alone. As well as optical image stabilization we want more quality night shots.

Battery life
It looks as though the battery will be smaller due to the fact that we are expecting not only a metal / glass unibody but the Galaxy S6 (and possibly S Edge) will be ultra-thin. As a result the battery is said to be 2600 mAh. Now there are several factors to a handset that can drain a battery fast:-

a) The operating system... Lollipop (Android 5) may be causing the battery to drain rapidly as it is a major upgrade. No doubt that Google will keep releasing updates to improve the overall Lollipop experience as they have done with other incarnations of Android.

b) A QHD display! Samsung could reveal an improvement upon its Super AMOLED technology that is less taxing on the battery.

c) The processor; as soon as you start using your handset to consume media i.e. YouTube videos, games and music the battery starts to diminish considerably. It seems to me that the tech media keeps forgetting that Samsung is an experienced chip manufacturer and that it has been responsible for the iPhone A series of processors. Many showed concern regarding the use of Samsung’s own chip, Exynos 7420 for the Galaxy S6 (and S Edge) instead of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 810 but Samsung would not jeopardise its flagship knowing how high the stakes are. Who knows how long Samsung has been working on the Exynos 7420? To hazard a guess I would say since Apple engaged Samsung to realize its 64-bit processor; it was just waiting for Lollipop.

We have an idea that the Exynos 7420 chip will be less of a strain on the battery.

Biometric scanner
We have yet to get details on the fingerprint scanner. Apparently the swipe to unlock fingerprint scanner is out! The fingerprint scanner should work in a similar way to the iPhone. But that is just hearsay! It could be that Samsung removes this feature totally from the Galaxy S6 and S Edge. To me a fingerprint scanner is just a novelty.

It does appear as though the heart rate scanner will still be a feature.

Samsung specific apps
I am not talking about bloatware but Samsung productivity apps... We have no idea what or if Samsung will provide its own apps that can take advantage of the Exynos 7420 processor and much rumoured 3GB RAM. For all we know it could be 4GB when it is actually released.

It sort of goes with the biometric scanner in that Samsung did a good job with the S Health app to track steps, heart rate, calorie intake, etc. I use it on my Galaxy Note 4. I find it very useful.

Sound
We don’t know if the Galaxy S6 and S Edge will have the same kind of sound features that will appeal to enthusiastic and professional musicians like the Galaxy Note 4 does. Fingers crossed that it does! The functions for sound can make a great difference in sales as music making apps on Android have gotten to a very high standard. Again, Samsung has its own Soundcamp music making app that could see its way on the Galaxy S6 and S Edge.

See?
There is a lot that we really don’t know. I could post up “leaked” pictures of the Galaxy S6 and its Edge variant but you have probably seen them already. And the chances are is that those pictures are genuine. Samsung and other manufacturers “leak” the images and benchmarks on purpose to generate excitement and to keep the media (in general) writing and talking about the Next Big Thing. The images are also leaked so that we don’t expect too much of the design so when it is actually revealed it shouldn’t come as a shock if you were expecting something outlandish. Once the look of the handset is “revealed” we should then start to focus on what the handset can do.

In a way we’ve been looking at “leaks” ever since Samsung put the Galaxy Alpha out there which has morphed to the all metal Galaxy A series. Some of that design ethos will go into the Galaxy S6 & S Edge (as I have pointed out already).

SHOWTIME
The reason why the Galaxy S5 didn’t do so well wasn’t because of the “leaks”... Well, kind of... We’ll get to that in a bit... It was simply because Samsung didn’t do a presentation in a similar vein to the Galaxy S4. Samsung should get back to those big reveals; while the introduction of the Galaxy S4 didn’t go down with everybody – it was seen as patronizing to women – it still showed off the great functionality of the handset. I would imagine that Samsung was feeling deflated after the Apple witch hunt and when the tech media panned the Galaxy S4 Unpacked event it (Samsung) felt rejected and decided to tone things down for the Galaxy S5, “Back to basics...” If the “leaks” did damage the Galaxy S5 it was because some of the “leaked specs” didn’t live up to the hype. I was initially disappointed with the Galaxy S5 design (even though it was “leaked”); I found myself hoping that some of the concept renderings (at the time) would have been based upon a Samsung design. I was also disappointed with the spec. We Android folk want our premium handsets to have the best tech crammed inside it! As it turned out the Galaxy S5 “Prime” was the LTE-A G906S variant of the Galaxy S5 and there are so many variants of it! Here in the UK – at least – we were expecting the LTE-A G906S to be on the market but it wasn’t. As a result some consumers opted for the LG G3 instead.

I reckon had Samsung stuck to its flamboyant Unpacking sense of showmanship with a more thoughtful approach to women, for example, I think that the Galaxy S5 would have shifted more units. I don’t know about you, but I do appreciate when Samsung shows us situations where its innovations are useful. Samsung didn’t go all out on presentation with the Galaxy S5 so much so that I can’t even remember the whole event like I do the Galaxy S4 Unpacking.

UNPACKED 1^st MARCH 2015
I am hoping that Samsung will restore the Unpacked flare that they are famous for since the introduction of the Galaxy S3 at this year’s Mobile World Congress. I want to see what Samsung has envisioned for us. I love it when they make a great show of it combing the use of video projection and actors. The Unpacked event is not just for the media and tech-heads out there... Uh-uh! Many consumers are watching to learn as much as possible on what could be their next handset. Consumers like to see how what could be their next handset differentiate from the competition. It’s these unique selling points that went into the adverts for the Galaxy S3 and S4. For the Galaxy S5 ads I remember the battery saving capabilities and heart rate monitor... Whereas with the Galaxy S3 I learned about the great camera functionality and unique design! And with the Galaxy S4 it was not only the camera but Air Gestures and Smart Pause!

In other words the Galaxy S5 was undersold. That said there was a great interest on the UK launch that took place in London’s Westfield shopping complex in Stratford. Since then Samsung has closed its Stratford retail outlet. It’s a bit of a shame but the Central London Samsung shop is still in existence and is very busy!

A SENSE OF WOW
What I have taken from the various “leaks” is that the Galaxy S6 and S Edge will most likely be the most powerful handsets in the world.

It’s also going to have a different design language that befits an ultra-thin unibody while being recognizable as a Samsung handset. Yeah, yeah... ...some people are saying, “It’s like an iPhone...” already... If the “leaked” pictures are for real then it is more like a hybrid between the HTC One and iPhone. I would have preferred that it had front-facing stereo speakers but as Samsung seem to be aiming to create the world’s thinnest handset it’s not going to support it (front-facing speakers). Maybe, just maybe those “leaked” images are a red herring and we could be in for a surprise with the actual Galaxy S6 and S Edge. I am not going to hold my breath on the design for the reasons mentioned above i.e. the “leaks” are meant to get people used to the design (instead of expecting something from another galaxy... hee hee...). I saw the leak for the Galaxy S3, S4 and S5 and I did hope that they would be different. But the designs never detracted from the functionality of the handsets themselves. I have yet to see the camera on a premium Galaxy handsets bettered; the camera is one of the reasons why I have stuck with the Galaxy S and Note ranges.

I don’t think the media and consumers will be disappointed when it comes to the functionality; functionality is Samsung’s speciality and I expect to be wowed once more on what the Galaxy S6 and S Edge can do!

If Samsung presents the Galaxy S6 and S Edge right I don’t see a reason for them not to sell like hotcakes!

64... BIATCH
That’s right! Samsung’s 64-bit Exynos processor is going to be another selling point for the Galaxy S6 and S Edge. As a result I envisage that the Galaxy S6 and S Edge will be the biggest selling handsets this year (not counting the Galaxy Note 5 come September). By the looks of it the Exynos 7420 processor is more advanced than the Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 and since most premium handsets will be packing it i.e. the HTC One M9, LG Flex 2 and the Sony Z4 - to name a few – the Galaxy S6 and S Edge are going to stand out (from any device using the Snapdragon 810). Samsung are coming back with a vengeance.

Related articles:-

Double Edged Sword

Galaxy S6 Follow-Up

Samsung Throwing A Curve

Samsung Design Principals

Samsung to Fade Away

Apple Biased Media Assault on the Soon To Be Released Galaxy S6 and S Edge

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A NEW SYNAPSE CIRCUIT WEBSITE IS ON THE WAY! 

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT NEWS REALLUSION LAUNCHES ICLONE 6

 SYNAPSE CIRCUIT

NEWS:
REALLUSION LAUNCHES ICLONE 6 - REAL-TIME ANIMATION & CINEMATIC RENDERING

Goodhour, Synapse Circuit Readers! I hope that you had a great weekend! I also hope that all well in your world and that you’re making the most of your tech!

Here’s some brilliant news if you have been looking for a cost effective way to get into 3D animation and without a media degree!

#Reallusion #iClone6 #3DAnimation

ATTACK OF THE CLONES
iClone 6 now includes support for Industry leading tools Substance, SpeedTree, PhysX & Indigo Render with 10x faster production speed to create cost-effective 3D animations.

UK (February 16^th, 2015) - Reallusion launches iClone 6, a substantially enhanced release three years in-the-making. iClone 6 features refined 3D scene and character animation tools, new ultra-realistic rendering plus cinematic all-in-one editing environment for filmmakers, animators and storytellers. – iClone 6, new flexible UI has settings for instant layouts to do “Animation,” or “Visual Effects” or you can setup your own customized UI workspace.  Apart from the vast visual and usability improvement, iClone 6 is empowered with lots of exciting features that are a direct result of months of collaboration with many, industry-leading real-time technology partners: Allegorithmic Substances – IDV SpeedTree – NVidia PhysX – Indigo Render.



With enhanced visual quality, a streamlined plug-in architecture and rich instant character content, iClone 6 democratizes 3D animation by offering easy-to-use, affordable and an open pipeline for everyone to create their own professional 3D animations.

MAIN FEATURES:-

iClone 6 adds new 3D technologies: Substance, Indigo, PhysX, SpeedTree

iClone 6 connects hobbyists to professional artists to industry-leading technologies with support for NVidia PhysX, IDV SpeedTree, Allegorithmic Substance and Indigo Render by Glare Technologies. 

Indigo RT Plug-in for Ultra-realistic Rendering
GPU acceleration with Indigo Ray Tracing rendering, enables iClone 6 users to achieve real-time production, bring more photo-realistic, cinematic look and feel to the iClone engine. To streamline this unique workflow, Reallusion provides an automatic shader mapping between iClone 6 and Indigo. In addition, users can perform custom refinement using Indigo's unique shader options, or they can choose to download Indigo's material library for even better results.

Support NVidia’s PhysX technology
For iClone 6 now supports NVidia’s PhysX technology which enables natural real-time simulation for hair and cloth movement, Reallusion has also enhanced the rigid body system with a brand new visual constraints system to easier structure sophisticated physics behavior. Enhancing the creation of natural scene is possible now as iClone 6 has upgraded it’s SpeedTree engine to give wind control over timeline and trees now come with multiple texture channels enhanced with normal, specular, and even transmissive effects. The powerful Substance engine is built-in to iClone 6 empowering users to easily add dynamic texture behaviors to existing iClone materials, as well as provide texture blending animation capabilities. Additionally, users can also load the vast Substance material library or create their own by using Allegorithmic’s Substance Designer tool.

One of the Largest Content Marketplaces
Reallusion is not only a 3D animation software provider with 300,000 content items in 14,000 packs, but it is also steadily becoming one of the largest real-time content marketplaces for instant animation resources. With top-selling game content providers: Dexsoft, Quantum Theory Entertainment, Protofactor and Necturus; iClone users can take advantage of using high-quality characters, scenes and props in their projects.



Smart character animation creation
Animate in iClone 6 without the hassle of complicated character preparation. Anyone can animate a 3D character with auto lip-sync capability and motion puppeteering tools. The embedded character content contains customizable facial & body templates along with outfits, props, motion profiles, particles and post effect templates that allow users to create an avatar and start animating on the spot.

Visit Reallusion’s website for free training, demo videos and more information: http://www.reallusion.com/iclone/default.aspx

Pricing & Availability:
iClone6 is now available at Reallusion Online Store in 2 versions for Windows PC.

iClone6 Standard list price: £79.99
iClone6 PRO list price: £159.99
Great value bundle deals: starts from £119 

About Reallusion Inc
Headquartered in Silicon Valley, Reallusion is a leading-edge software developer providing cinematic animation tools for PC, Mac and mobile platforms. Reallusion’s pioneering storytelling technology excelling at character animation, facial morphing and voice lip-sync allows fast creation of interactive avatars for 3-D real-time filmmaking and previsualization for professional post-production. Their powerful yet easy-to-use tools make character animation accessible to both Mac and PC users of all skill levels. Reallusion’s development of core technologies and growing base of intellectual property firmly establish the company as power among emerging technology innovators, furthering their graphic and imaging embedded kernels to top-brand device manufacturers worldwide. http://www.reallusion.com/

Thank you so much for reading Synapse Circuit!

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Synapse Circuit for tech news, opinions, articles, reviews and competitions. You will find interactive PDF magazines, videos and links to free legal software! Check it out at Synapse Circuit dot com

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT NEWS Auslogics Free Software for Microsoft Windows

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
NEWS:
Auslogics’ Free Software for Microsoft Windows® Now Comes with the Green Seal Guarantee.

Goodhour, Synapse Circuit Readers! How goes it? What 64-bit handset do you have your eye on, huh? Well, I think mine is the Samsung Galaxy S6. 64-bit on Android is on its way! It’s going to be sooooo, sooooo amazing!

Of you are a Windoze user like me there are times when we need to clean it up! Check out this bit of news from Auslogics!

# Auslogics #PC #GreenSeal #PCOptimization

GREEN SEALING THE DEAL
The Auslogics Green Seal is introduced by the company to indicate Windows® optimization products guaranteed to be free of adware, toolbars, malware, viruses or third-party offers bundled in the installer.

Sydney, Australia – February 13th, 2015  – Auslogics Software, a leading Australian publisher of innovative PC optimization programs, has just introduced the Auslogics Green Seal – a badge intended to offer guarantee of software products’ total cleanness from all types of add-ons that a user may consider undesirable.

It is common practice nowadays that publishers of free software products bundle them with adware or third-party application offers to get revenue. Such additional programs install onto computers with other legitimate software without the user noticing or realizing it. Oftentimes there is an opt-out option, but users may skip through the setup process without paying attention. Having unwanted software installed is one of the most common complaints from PC users on the Internet today.

Auslogics Software has ventured to address this concern by not only offering adware-free programs, but also providing the user the added assurance that nothing extra will be installed onto their PC with an Auslogics product that bears the Green Seal.   

“Users these days are recommended to closely follow software installation process and read the fine print if they don’t want to end up with a bunch of toolbars, browser extensions and other things they wouldn’t voluntarily download,” – says Anna Lind, the company’s PR Representative. “We at Auslogics wanted to put an end to this. We want our users to feel absolutely safe downloading software from our website, and the Green Seal is intended to signal that they can relax at least during Auslogics software installs.”

Auslogics has just released updates to their line of freeware products, each of them now bearing the Green Seal. These products include: Auslogics Disk Defrag Free, Registry Cleaner, Registry Defrag, Browser Care and Auslogics Duplicate File Finder.

The freeware programs with the Auslogics Green Seal may be downloaded from the publisher’s website at www.auslogics.com. Auslogics cautions users from getting the company’s software from other sources, as the Green Seal guarantee does not apply to program copies downloaded from third-party websites.

Company Background:
Founded in 2008 in Sydney, Australia, Auslogics Software publishes a wide range of innovative computer maintenance, optimization and security tools for home and business use.

Software from Auslogics is used by over 15 million people around the globe and is the tool of choice of many IT professionals and computer manufacturing companies. The company is a Microsoft Gold Application Development Partner.

Auslogics Disk Defrag has been praised as the best disk defragmentation tool on CNET and other online resources, as well as included in the 10 best free software programs of the year list by PC Magazine several years in a row.

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SYNAPSE CIRCUIT NEWS MAGIX 2015 Grammy Awards

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
NEWS:
MAGIX 2015 Grammy Awards + Website Relaunch + Video Contest

Goodhour, Synapse Circuit Readers! How are you? As always I am hoping that all is well in your world and that your tech is functioning as it should! Thank goodness for the weekend!


Are you a Magix fan? Well, you should be as Magix has made multimedia accessible to anyone with an idea or two as you have seen with Music Maker Jam for both Android and iOS. For now Android users are able to edit full HD video straight from a handset or tablet with Movie Edit Touch! Get it now on the Google Play Store: Magix Movie Edit Touch

#Magix #2015GrammyAwards #VideoContest #WebsiteRelaunch

FEEL AND SEE THE MAGIX HAPPENING!

London, 13h February 2015...
Software is more than just lines of code. Whether it's music, video or photo editing, Magix software makes it possible for users to share their adventures and experiences with those who matter most. For this reason, Magix are starting 2015 with a couple of exciting projects cantered on its users.


SEQUOIA AT THE GRAMMY AWARDS: A STATEMENT FROM MAGIX
Some of our users got great news last Sunday during the 57th Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. Tom Coyne and Aya Merrill from the Sterling Sound studio have been using our professional DAW Sequoia for many years now. They are the mastering minds behind the latest albums from Taylor Swift, Sam Smith and Beyoncé, which were nominated for "Record of the Year", "Song of the Year" and "Album of the Year". In total Sam won four Grammys, including "Song of the Year" and "Record of the Year".

In addition to Sterling Sound, the talent of longtime Sequoia user Paul Blakemore helped secure "Best Jazz Vocal Album" and "Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album", while Alan Silverman and Brad Blackwood were influential to the winning of "Best Latin Jazz Album" and "Best Roots Gospel Album". We would like to congratulate all these brilliant sound engineers on their success and thank them for their continued confidence in Sequoia and MAGIX.

MAGIX.COM GETS A MAKEOVER!
We develop software products that have appeal to all levels of users so we have made our website more user friendly and more accessible for everyone. The new product finder allows the desired software to be found within a few simple clicks, while a responsive website design means that surfing on mobile devices is now better than ever. Finally, we have switched over to HTML5 and introduced a new content management system. We strive to maintain our position on the cutting edge of technology and can now offer a completely new experience of our product world.

JUST CUT IT VIDEO CONTEST

Behind every video, photo or song is a person with their own story to tell. With our latest video editing software Fastcut, we would like our users to share their videos and stories with us. Thus, in collaboration with Intel, Asus and Nilox, we are facilitating an über-cool video contest! Everyone who participates receives a free copy of Fastcut (worth €69.99), while the winner will be a proud owner of a high quality ASUS Zenbook™  UX301LA with an Intel® Core™ i7 processor Intel® Iris™ Graphics. Moreover, the Nilox F-60 EVO Action Cam is the perfect companion to create new compelling videos. Further details will be available soon through our magazine.

ABOUT MAGIX...
MAGIX is an internationally active provider of software, online services and digital contents for use with multimedia products and services for personal and business communication. MAGIX offers private and professional users a technologically demanding and at the same time user-friendly range of software, online services and digital contents for design, editing, presentation and archiving of digital photos, videos, music, documents and websites.

Thank you so much for reading SynapseCircuit!

Expect more reviews, news, opinions, competitions and more from Synapse Circuit!

Please check out the Synapse Circuit site here: Synapse Circuit.com

Synapse Circuit for tech news, opinions, articles, reviews and competitions. You will find interactive PDF magazines, videos and links to free legal software! Check it out at Synapse Circuit dot com